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Room to Breathe
Room to Breathe is Reba McEntire-'s 26th studio album. It was released on November 18, 2003 by MCA Nashville Records. It was McEntire's first album of new recordings since her 1999 album, "So Good Together" and her first studio album of the new millennium. Background The album was recorded in Nashville Tennessee in 2003 and consists of twelve tracks. About.com album reviewer, Matt Bjorke referred to the album as "a competent collection of well written, fun and emotional tunes. In essence, it's a return to form for Reba and should prove to be a critical and commercial success." Marshall Bowden of PopMatters considered McEntire's release to contain "more traditional-sounding material", exemplifying tracks such as "I'm Gonna Take My Mountain" and "Love Revival" to evoke this sound. The album was goaled to mainly showcase the different musical styles McEntire had utilized. For this, Bowden praised McEntire and producers, stating that, "McEntire, together with producers Buddy Cannon and Norro Wilson, has done a good job of presenting a variety of sounds. For some, the result will be too diverse and lack focus, but if McEntire can do all of these styles convincingly, why shouldn’t she?" Some of the material on the album included "story songs," such as "He Gets That From Me," which was recorded in memory of individuals who lost family members in the September 11, 2001 attacks. Another track, "Moving Oleta" explains how an elderly man is forced to move his wife to a nursing home. Certain tracks included background vocals from country artist, Linda Davis. McEntire also collaborated with another country artist, Vince Gill for the closing track, "It Just Has to Be This Way," whom Allmusic reviewer, Maria Konicki Dinoia compared to McEntire's and Gill's number one duet single, "The Heart Won't Lie." Tracklisting #Secret (3:22) #If I Had Any Sense Left at All (4:00) #My Sister (3:59) #Once You've Learned to Be Lonely (4:28) #Moving Oleta (3:27) #Love Revival (4:07) #He Gets That from Me (3:38) #I'm Gonna Take That Mountain (3:24) #Room to Breathe (3:31) #Sky Full of Angels (2:51) #Somebody (3:50) #It Just Has to Be This Way (with Vince Gill) (3:48) Singles Released #I'm Gonna Take That Mountain (released on August 30, 2003 #"Somebody" (released on January 17, 2004) #"He Gets That from Me" (released on September 4, 2004) #"My Sister" (released on March 19, 2005) Chart Performance "Room to Breathe" peaked at #4 on Billboard's Top Country Albums chart and #25 on the Billboard 200 with first week sales of 72,297, spending 4 weeks on the chart. It was certified platinum by the RIAA in August of 2005. Critical Reception Matt Bjorke of About.com gave the five out five stars, saying, "When you add up the performances throughout the duration of Room To Breathe, Reba has created her best and most personal album yet. With truly something for every country fan, the album is sure to become a big hit with old and new fans alike." Allmusic's Maria Konicki Dinoia gave the album three out of five stars. Even though she gave the album a lower rating, she gave much praise to effort, calling the album to sound, "revitalizing" and show a "cool Reba." Dinoia gave praise to the traditional sound of the album, saying, "On her first studio album in four years, she resurrects her passion for country music that seemed to have been missing on her previous album." Marshall Bowden of PopMatters also found "Room to Breathe" to also have a more traditional approach to it, comparing it to the sound of country music in the 1970s. Category:Albums